Vehicle-shaft



(No Model.)

J. & W. 'P. KUYKENDALL.

VEHICLE SHAFTS.

No. 499,340. 4 Patented June 13, 1893.

NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSIAH KUYKENDALL AND WILLIAM F. KUYKENDALL, OF COOKEVILLE, TENNESSEE.

VEHlCLE-SHAF-T.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 499,340, dated June 13, 1893.

Application filed October 25, 1892- Serial No. 449,986. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known that we, JOSIAH KUYKENDALL and WILLIAM FRANKLIN KUYKENDALL, citizens of the United States, residing at Cookeville, in the county of Putnam and State of Tennessee, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Carriage Poles and Shafts; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. V

This invention relates to improvements in the trace-attaching fittings of carriage poles and shafts, and its objects are to dispense with whiftletrees to better distribute the pulling strain upon pole or shafts; to facilitate and economize repairs to shafts, and to enable draft animals to be speedily detached from a vehicle.

In the accompanying drawings, like letters represent always the like parts, and Figure I is an inverted plan of a pair of shafts fitted with the invention; Fig. II, a cross section on the line a: o: of the first figure; Fig. IILadetail plan, showing a mechanical modification in one of the parts; Fig. IV, a plan showing the invention modified in its application to an ordinary pair of shafts, and Fig. V, an inverted plan, showing the like. modification further modified to adapt it to an ordinary carriage pole.

A is a pair of shafts,whereof B is the cross bar, connected to the shafts by clamps, C, substantially of the form and construction shown; it being our intention to make the clamps in standard sizes and all of like size interchangeable in use. By making the cross bar shorter than the proper width between shafts we form slots, d, in each of which we seat, vertically, a roller, E, setting the axis thereof as closely as possible toward the end of the cross bar, leaving a good space between the face of the roller and the proximate face of the shaft. A flexible band, F, works upon the ro1lers,its ends being passed through the slots, (1, between roller and shaft, from back to front, and to prevent sagging at the middle of the band it may be carried in staples, g, along the rear face of the cross bar. As a matter of mere mechanical judgment or finish, the band may be in two pieces, and the part working to and fro along the rear face of the cross bar replaced by a straight, thin metal rod, h, connecting the two parts of the flexible band; all as shown in Fig. III. The

two ends of the band have each a metal tip, i, and it is preferable that this tip should have a slight curve outward, or toward the shaft when shaft and band are parallel to each other. Upon either end of the flexible band, in front of the cross bar, is a hollow slide, K, so gaged as to size that when the ring or catch of a harness trace is slipped over the end of the band, and the latter is doubled upon itself to hold the ring or catch, the slide may be passed over the fold, thus locking the trace to the band; the rigid and curved tip of the band helping to make the lock secure. Attached to each slide is a pulling strap, Z, passing backward through the slot (1 and thence up to the driver, and whenever the traces are taut, a pull upon these straps will draw back the slides K, the ends of the band will unfold and the traces will be released from the vehicle. I

a In connection and co-operation with the means just described for detaching the traces, each shaft is provided on its under face and toward its forward end with a longitudinal slotted bracket, M, wherein works a shouldered pin, n, the shoulder being near the forward end of the pin and bearing against the front end of the bracket. The head of this pin is to be formed into a link or hook, so that the backing strap of the harness may be hitched to it, and it follows that whenever the traces are detached by the means already described, the forward movement of the horse will draw the pins n from their sockets and the vehicle will be freed from attachment to the harness.

It is obvious that with the band F in use there will be no occasion for a whiffletree and equally obvious that the strain caused by the pull of the horse is better distributed than when it falls upon a whiftletree, pivoted at its center to the center of the cross bar by a pin passing vertically through tree and bar. It is further apparent that in case of breakage of shaft at the strain end, or breakage of cross bar or clamp, the shafts can be more easily repaired than if the cross bar were mortised to the shafts.

To apply our invention to a pair of ordinary shafts, wherein the cross bar is already attached by mortise and tenon, we dispense with the clamps O and seat the rollers E in hollow brackets, O, on the front face of the cross bar, and the band F works along that face, instead of the rear face of the bar, all as shown in Fig. IV.

To apply the invention to an ordinary carriage pole, P, adapted to double harness, we follow the same course as in the case of the ordinary pair of shafts mortisedto their cross bar, attaching the brackets O to the double tree R and doubling the number of rollers E, brackets 0, bands F, slides K and straps l in use, so that each horse has its complete set of trace attachments, with their detaching device, and we have also two slots in the bracket M, for the reception of the pins n, so thateach horse may be independently detached from the carriage pole in case of need; all as shown in Fig. V.

When our detaching device is attached to an ordinary pole or pair of shafts, the pulling strap Z, not having the slots cl to pass through on its way to the driver, may be passed through an eye, 5, on top of the cross bar or double tree.

Having thus described our invention, we claim as follows:

The combination of a pair of carriage shafts;-

the shortened cross bar between said shafts; the clamps fitted to said shafts and cross bar; the Vertical rollers seated in the slots formed by the shafts, cross bar and clamps; the flexible band supported in said slots and working upon said rollers, and having the metal tips,

and the hollow slides mounted upon the flexible band in front of the aforesaid cross bar; the whole constructed and arranged substantially as and for the purposes described.

In testimonywhereof we aifix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

JOSIAH KUYKENDALL. W. F. KUYKENDALL. \Vitnesses:

R. B. CAPsHAW, O. BENTON. 

